Ancient Tales of Ulster, Book 1.  Cuchulainn, Champion of Ulster

Artwork by Gary Hamilton,  text by Michael Hall

Island Publications  ISBN 0-95141-941-2

The story comes from a group of tales called the Ulster Cycle, and in this book the pictorial representation of Cuchulainn's early life is handled honestly and well. The publishers are accurate in their comment -

The sagas are remarkable not only for their mixture of violent battles, emotional poetry and heroic imagery, but also for their directness in 'physical' matters: nakedness; seduction and love-making.
Hall and Hamilton present us with an uncensored version of the ancient tales, pointing out the rather twisted values of some previous publishers -
While many versions sanitise, or eliminate these physical elements, they still leave intact most of the bloodthirsty scenes....
Just think back to some of the fairy-tales you read or heard when you were a child! I was impressed with this work. The ancient stories on which the work draws are a vital part of our cultural heritage, and by re-casting a part of them in this form a wider audience can get to know them. Younger people are increasingly familiar with visual images and can interpret them in quite sophisticated ways. It could well be that, to begin with, a graphic presentation of our heritage, such as Hall andHamilton offer, is the best way to catch their interest.
Cuchulainn may be purchased on-line :   Amazon UK 
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